Large logistics center under construction in Punta Gorda lands first tenant

January 12th, 2023

By Louis Llovio, Commercial Real Estate Editor - Business Observer

A Texas lumber distributor will take 75,000 square feet of space for its first Florida location.

Dakota Premium Hardwoods, a national lumber distribution company, is opening its first Florida location in a new 75,000-square-foot Punta Gorda warehouse.

The site of the new facility is the Florida Gulf Coast 75 Logistics Center, which is on the grounds of the Enterprise Charlotte Airport Park.

Dakota will build out its own space at the center to meet its needs. The work is set to be completed in August and the warehouse will open in September.

The company will employ about 25 people in Punta Gorda.

Equus Capital Partners, the developer, is building the 378,000-square-foot center on spec and has launched a national marketing campaign with hopes of having it fully leased by the time the work was complete.

But like the old song says, “we’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.”

Plans are to complete the additional 303,000 square feet in the third quarter of this year, near when Dakota will be finishing up.

Waco, Texas-based Dakota is a distributor of lumber, engineered products and full-job packages such as supports and fasteners. It has 11 locations in the U.S., including Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas.

Dan Miller, the executive managing director for Colliers, which represented Equus, says the property is attractive because of where it’s located.

“The Punta Gorda market has emerged as the new epicenter for this type of distribution project,” Miller says in a statement announcing the agreement. “It’s a good location to serve all of Florida as a regional distribution center, with Sarasota County to the north and Collier County to the south.”